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How to Make a Small Apartment Look Larger

When planning out spaces, interior designers use many techniques to alter the way a room looks. With the right treatment, a room can be made to look larger or smaller. The renter of a small apartment or condo can use these same tricks to make their spaces look larger and more open. Here some easy ways to transform the rooms in a small living space.

Use Color to Make a Room Look Larger

Designers use color to draw the eyes to certain spots in the room and to keep the eyes moving. When the eyes settle on one place, the mind makes a judgement as to how large the room is. Draw the eyes as far from the viewer as possible and the room will seem more spacious.

Earth tones allow the eyes to move through the room easily without stopping. Use tans, grays and light browns with contrasting colors only one or two shades darker or lighter. Brighter colored items should be placed at the end of the room opposite the doorway to draw the eyes there and create the feeling of depth. Bright colors in the center of the room will stop the eyes and create a confining feeling.

Use Lines to Direct the Eyes

Use drapery treatments that hang from floor to ceiling on windows of any size. The eyes will follow the vertical lines of the draperies to the ceiling making the room look taller than it is. Vertical blinds achieve the same effect.

Shop for area rugs in San Diego with lines in them that direct the eyes trough the room. Place the rugs so the lines guide the eyes through the room to the other side or out of the room.

Use tall floor lamps to create the illusion of height. Sofas should be positioned along the path of the eyes through and out of the room. Use rectangular coffee tables and end tables with their lines along the same path to gain depth in the room.

Use Reflective Surfaces to Open Up a Room

Natural light in a room makes it appear larger. Place mirrored surfaces on walls opposite a window to reflect the sunlight throughout the room. Mirrors on either side of a window make the room look wider. Furniture with clear glass surfaces reflect the light and allow the eyes to pass through the surface creating a space that feels larger.

At night make use of spot lights and canned halogen lights to brighten up the dark corners of a room and make use of the reflective surfaces. The lighter a room is, the more welcoming it will feel.

A small apartment or condo can feel like a large living space by using the same techniques as interior designers. Creative use of color, lines and surfaces transform a confined space into an open living area.